Brendan Rodgers insists he feels no added pressure ahead of the visit of his former club Watford to Madejski Stadium tomorrow (3pm kick-off).

The Reading manager is expected to receive a hostile reception from the 3,000-strong swarm of Hornets fans, but played down suggestions that this is his biggest game in charge of Royals so far.

Watford boss Malky Mackay has exceeded all expectations at Vicarage Road after taking over from Rodgers in the summer and helping the Hertfordshire club to eighth place.

But Rodgers knows all about tomorrow’s opponents and feels his team have a great chance of winning at home in the Championship for the first time in eight months.

He said: “It’ll be a tight game, but I feel if we bring our A game, even if our opponent brings an A game too, we will still win. It’s as simple as that.

“It’s a game I’m looking forward to. We just want to get back to winning ways and progress up the league.

“I never try to take pressure into football. For me it’s a job I love doing. There are bigger pressures in life than football.

“We want to win to cap off a lot of the great work that we’re doing every day. We also want to give the supporters that winning feeling and end that wee bit of frustration for ourselves.”

Rodgers managed just two wins from his first nine games in charge at Watford, a record he would equal at Reading with a win tomorrow. Some fans have been critical of him as results have not gone in his favour.

But the league’s youngest manager said: “This was a unique opportunity and there’s absolutely no way I regret coming here. I’m now the manager of a great club whose supporters have been brilliant to me.

“As a manager you’re in it up to three levels – your ankle, your knee and your neck and you’re trying to keep it below knee level if you can,” added the 36-year-old.

“At the minute I’m not up to my neck in it – and I will always fight to do the best I can for this club.”